GENEVA. Dec 23 (Interfax) - The participants in the Russia-U.S.-UN meeting in Geneva have failed to agree upon Iran's participation in the upcoming international conference on Syria, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry might need to have a special meeting to reach a consensus on the matter, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said.
"This issue still remains up in the air. More contacts might possibly be necessary at the ministerial level to clarify the situation concerning Iran," Gatilov told journalists following the tripartite meeting in Geneva on Friday.
"Our American partners have reiterated that Iran's participation in the forum is unacceptable to them and they are not prepared to give their consent to sending it the invitation," Gatilov said.
The Russian delegation tried once again to persuade the U.S. that Iran's involvement in the conference would create the necessary political atmosphere to implement peace agreements, he said.
"We have pointed out to the Americans that virtually all countries, including the European ones and Turkey, prefer to invite Tehran, and the UN is actively in favor of Iran's participation as well, and therefore their [the U.S.'] position looks illogical," he said.
"But we have so far parted with the understanding that this issue needs to be clarified specially," he said.
Asked whether Saudi Arabia will take part in Geneva II, Gatilov said it is "on the list [of those invited], and we have no problems with Saudi Arabia's participation, nor do we actually have problems with participation of any other countries or international organizations."
The list of external participants in Geneva II has been agreed upon on the whole, the diplomat said. Taking part in the conference will be about 30 delegations, including the countries neighboring Syria and a number of other key players interested in settlement of the Syrian conflict, he said.